Vehicles are often used to carry cargo, for example, in a bed or on a load deck of a pickup truck, sport utility vehicle, trailer, or other vehicle. In order to secure the cargo to the load deck, it is common to wrap tie-lines around or over the cargo and to connect the ends of the tie-lines to preexisting holes in the body of the pickup truck or to fixed tie-downs on the body of the pickup truck. The tie-lines can be in the form of wires, straps and/or ropes made of either inelastic or elastic material. As shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,259,711 to Beck and in U.S. Pat. No. 4,248,558 to Lechner, the tie-downs are generally rings or hooks for receiving the tie-lines and are separate pieces joined to one or more other pieces to form the slider. Furthermore, many pickup trucks are constructed with few or no exposed tie-downs in the load deck, making the use of tie-lines difficult if not impossible. Often, if a pickup truck does have tie-downs, the locations of the tie-downs are limited in number, can not be adjusted, or can be adjusted only to predetermined positions which may not be ideal. This makes it difficult or impossible to properly secure the cargo.
In order to provide tie-down locations for a load deck, track or rail systems have been proposed. Rail systems may include tie-downs in the form of sliders that move along the rail. Often, mechanical latches are used to secure the sliders at desired locations. U.S. Pat. No. 4,969,784 to Yanke shows an anchoring means 30 with a lock means (nut) 34 which is tightened to secure the slider against the track. Such lock means, however, may require tools or special handling, thereby complicating and delaying adjustment of the sliders. Other means of securing the sliders to the rail are known. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,248,558 to Lechner shows gripping means 32, 34 in the form of wedge-like teeth which protrude into channels formed in the base of the slider. These teeth are designed for “jamming or gripping engagement” flanges of the rail. Lechner has the disadvantages that the tie-down is constructed from a plurality of parts and may be difficult to produce and assemble. Another example is shown in Beck (U.S. Pat. No. 5,409,335), which uses a spring-biased plunger mechanism to engage the slider with the rail. The prior art lock means are complicated and contain many parts, which may be difficult to manufacture or adjust during use. Consequently, there is a need for a cargo securing system that is simple, inexpensive to manufacture, and easy to adjust.